“I’m on my way to Fátima,” said Nuno Neves to the Lusa agency.
The elected president, who led the most populous parish in the municipality of the Coimbra district, the Junta de Freguesia de Poiares (Santo André), was elected in 2021 by the PS, but decided to establish an independent movement and run for the City Hall, which had been led by the socialists since 2013.
Neves told Lusa that after a brief celebration with his team, he decided to leave, put on sneakers, dressed in shorts, and walk to Fátima.
“I’ve walked ten kilometers since I left home. It was a promise I made to myself, especially since tomorrow [Monday] is October 13, a special day,” he recounted.
Neves mentioned that he is undertaking the journey alone and expects to reach Fátima before noon.
“I’m not a practicing Catholic, but I am a believer. It was a promise and I am a man of my word,” he stated.
The elected president expressed confidence in his victory due to the “hugs and affection” received during the campaign.
“I believed I could win. There had never been an independent movement in Poiares, and this victory is fantastic and very rewarding,” he remarked.
Asked about the future, since he did not secure an absolute majority, Neves said he is “open to dialogue.”
The Poiares a Sério (PRS) movement, led by Nuno Neves, won the municipal elections in Vila Nova de Poiares, taking the City Hall from the PS, according to data from the Ministry of Internal Administration.
Following PRS, with 40.39% (two mandates), the second most voted was PPD/PSD, with 34.91% (two mandates), and the third was PS, with 16.35% of the votes (one mandate), which had been leading the municipality.
Lara Henriques, a councilwoman and candidate for the PS, told the Lusa agency that the result in the municipality is due to “circumstances,” considering the independent movement to be a phenomenon “similar to the populist movements in the country.”
Nuno Neves “is a very popular person, very beloved by the people,” she noted.
“Regardless of his competence or capacity, this populist phenomenon ends up winning,” she said, affirming that the PS will now reflect on the results “as a whole” and consider future actions.
In 2021, the PS, which was running João Miguel Henriques for a third and final term, obtained three councilors against two from the PSD.
